Non-response and what sounds like uninformative labeling are gigantic red flags for me.

Fish oil falls into the category of wondrously beneficial (IMO) unless it's poor quality to start with and/or mishandled during processing and storage. Then it doesn't just become less useful; it then has the potential for being an actual health hazard.

Connie,

Is Arctic Vigor a good quality fish oil then? I am looking through the various websites that discusses it, but cannot seem to find specific or direct answers to the questions you listed. There is discussion around the geography of where the fish are harvested (cold waters) and how Arctic Vigor is unique in its placement of EPA, DPA, and DHA molecules.

http://www.new-foods.com/product_info.php?products_id=30&osCsid=28638bc3753644476317f49e5a15f24d

Isn't that a product that does not even say "fish oil," never mind what kind of fish?

I think it's one of those "marine oil" products.


ETA: Just searched that whole web page for any mention at all of what fish they might be using, or even whether the product is all fish oil, part fish oil, etc.

QUOTE: marine species found abundantly in the ice-cold waters of the north atlantic END

That's a load of double-talk to avoid saying "fish" and to really really avoid saying what type of fish, IMO.

That whole page is about the benefits of fish oil (or of long-chain Omega 3s) in general and really not at all about what's in their product.





Edited by Connie Sutherland (12/05/2008 01:28 PM)
Edit reason: ETA

So I have tried unsuccessfully in getting a response from the manufacturer of the herring oil I had originally posted about, so I will not be purchasing it. Nonetheless, I was able to contact Arctic Vigor and asked them about the contents of their marine oil. I was told it is seal oil from Northern Canada and there is no fish oil in it. They proceeded to tell me about the benefits of seal oil over fish oil.

Anybody familiar with seal oil? The reason why they call it "marine oil" is for marketing purposes - they do not club baby seals, but that is the image the public draws up when the hear of seal products. I will admit when she said it was seal, I was not very excited.

Isn't the whole purpose of the fish oil to get the Omega 3's that are lacking in grain-fed meats? Since seal eat the salmon wouldn't the Omega 3's be as good as the Salmon?

This also leads me to ask if something like raw butter or raw fat from grass fed cows would be equal to the fish/seal oil for the Omega 3's?

As far a seal oil - native northern climes people have been eating them for generations. It's all what you are familiar with.

Raw meat and fat from range animals improves the 6-3 ratio enormously. I believe that it contains two or three times the Omega 3s as grain-fed beef, although the level drops back down if the animals are then feed-lotted.

I don't know about butter from grass-fed cows. Haven't read anything about it.

Anyone else?

 Quote: Siaty Mantak

... They proceeded to tell me about the benefits of seal oil over fish oil....

Like what?

I was told the main benefit of seal oil over fish oil is the high concentration of mono unsaturated fat (another form of Omega-3) while fish oil contains more of the saturated version; therefore faster and better absorption. There was mention of oxidation, which fish oil is more susceptible to than seal oil.

I did some searching online and found this article published in the Gazette, which seems to convey the same point:

http://www.mun.ca/gazette/issues/vol40no15/research.php

I have tried to locate the actual research article, but not successful yet. Nonetheless, I did find this research publication by Dr. Ho, who seems to also support the added benefits.

http://www.omega3sealoil.com/index.html

Interesting!

One thing to keep in mind about this quote in the top link:
QUOTE: Dr. Sukhinder Kaur Cheema has spent seven years researching the benefits of fish oil on a species of hamster that is prone to atherosclerosis, a common arterial disease in which raised areas of degeneration and cholesterol deposits plaques form on the inner surfaces of the arteries obstructing blood flow. END QUOTE is that this is not a canine health challenge. While dogs do have heart disease, they don't have the "heart attack" coronary artery disease that humans (and I gather a certain hamster) have.

Do you have any information about regulation, handling, and outside testing? These are three of the areas where a couple of other types of non-fish marine oils fall down. Or I could look around a little later for what the downsides might be.

How was the cost?

P.S. Their comparisons between flax and marine oils are apt, but of course, they are also applicable in comparing fish oil and flax (and other sources like canola).

Connie,

Thanks for the continual probes for answers. I am enjoying this research and learning a great deal. It seems that there are no specific regulations around seal oil. I did find this article written by what it seems to be a concerned citizen to the Government of Canada over such lack of regulation and seeming inappropriate categorization of seal products as fish products.

The most relevant part that has appeared in a few searches of mine on this matter is the concern over botulism. She reports:

"Seal oil capsules made in Newfoundland are reportedly manufactured “by a process of cold pressing, centrifuging and mechanical filtering.” But wait – that can’t possibly be right - cold pressing?? Can consumers trust that merely “filtering” seal oil will remove spores of Clostridium? (and the Brucella?) Seems unlikely…and besides, this does not describe an acceptable process to achieve commercial sterilization of food."

She concedes that she does not know if centrifuging and filtering is adequate, but justifies her questioning on the premise around the unclear classification (meat vs. fish) of the manufacturers of seal oil capsules.

The other point centers around the health of seals. There does not seem to be monitoring of seal population health and those harvested for consumption. It is interesting to note at the time of publication, the U.S. does not allow import of sea oil.

http://www.fisherycrisis.com/seals/seal%20products.htm

http://www.epi.hss.state.ak.us/bulletins/docs/b1997_24.htm